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The Texas Insider
The Texas Insider
The TEXAS Insider
Happy Monday!
News from across the State
This past Friday, Governor Greg Abbott joined the Israeli-American Council in Austin for their 8th Annual Summit to express his and Texas' support for Israel. (Official Press Release)
Early Sunday, Abbott posted on social media affirming support for "getting kids back to fundamentals of learning & empower parents with the tools to challenge the curriculum when it falls short of expectations." (Official Social Media Post). In recent months, Abbott and Lt. Governor Patrick have routinely touted support for "empowering parents" through school voucher programs and giving parents more control in curriculum decision-making.
Last week Sen. John Cornyn organized a bi-partisan trip with Republican and Democratic Senators to visit the Texas-Mexico border. Cornyn expressed optimism about the trip and believes there is an opportunity for Congress to achieve a bipartisan immigration deal. It has been nearly forty years since Congress passed substantive immigration legislation.
The makeup of the trip was similar to the senators who closely worked with Cornyn to pass gun legislation last year. The attendees were Krysten Sinema (Independent-Arizona), Chis Murphy (D-Connecticut), Mark Kelly (D-Arizona), Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina), James Lankford (R-Oklahoma), Chris Coons (D-Delaware), and Jerry Moran (R-Kansas). Any proposal will face a major challenge as there is substantive disagreement on proper border strategy between and within both parties. We will keep our eye's open for any Federal Border Security proposals, but considering Congress's track record, it is hard to gauge the timetable or realisticness of a deal. (Good write-up of the trip here)
The House and Senate are back this Tuesday, and everything should be pretty innocuous, with quick meetings in both chambers for various resolutions honoring different Texans and constituents.
The State Republican Party has begun airing radio ads against House Speaker Dade Phelan in his home district of Beaumont for allowing Democrats to chair House committees. (Here's a link to the ad) This early in the session, it's a bold move by the GOP to attack one of it's three most powerful leaders in the state of Texas.
Other House members reacted on Twitter, with Representative Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) tweeting, "Wow! [Texas GOP] 's hypocrisy knows no boundaries! They are fundraising off the passage of the Heartbeat and Trigger Bills — to fund their attacks on the Speaker who helped make them law!" (Link to Burrow's Twitter post)
After looking more at the proposed state budgets, we wanted to include some additional highlights:
SB 1 Highlights:
$4.6 billion to maintain current border security operations and give a pay raise for border law enforcement
$3 billion investment in mental health, including new and renovated state hospitals and expanded capacity in current hospitals
$650 million to increase community college funding based on schools' performance
Provisions for increased teacher pay, a thirteenth check, or a cost of living adjustment for retired teachers
Legislative Report
Over 2,058 bills have been filed as of 1/23/23.
127 days till Sine Die (Last day of the legislative session)
47 days till bill filing deadline
Agriculture
Last Friday, protesters rallied against SB 147 at the Fort Bend County Justice Center. SB 147, authored by Senator Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham), would prevent governments, businesses, and citizens of China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia from buying real estate in Texas. Protesters labeled the bill as discrimination, and the Fort Bend County Judge spoke out, saying he’s worried how this may impact lawful residents with green cards. (More on the issue here)
Elections
HB 1448 by Representative Tom Oliverson (R-Cypress) would require voters to submit a thumbprint in mail ballots. The Secretary of State would also work with any state agency deemed appropriate to procure thumbprints of as many voters as possible.
HB 296 by Representative John Bucy (D-Round Rock) would, among other things, require election officers to prioritize providing voter access to someone with a disability or mobility problems.
Education
HB 1447 by Representative Ryan Guillen (R-Rio Grande) proposes, among other things, that public institutions of higher education couldn’t require pregnant or parenting students, to take a leave of absence solely based on the student’s status as pregnant or parenting. Additionally, institutions have to provide reasonable accommodations and excuse all absences due to pregnancy or childbirth.
HB 1376 by Representative JM Lozano (R-Portland) would, among other things, change the school finance system from being based on daily attendance to average enrollment.
Some advocates believe this policy would give schools additional funds without having to punish them for students missing classes.
Representative Gary VanDeaver (R-Texarkana) recently said he would favor raising the basic allotment instead of reinventing the funding model. In his opinion, it would give schools more money and allow for teacher raises. (Quote here)
Your Legislators
Representative Gary VanDeaver has filed eleven bills as of 01/23/23. If you'd like to reach out to his office, they can be contacted at (512) 463-0692.
Senator Bryan Hughes has twenty-nine pieces of legislation as of 01/22/23. If you'd like to reach out to his office, they can be contacted at (512) 463-0101
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Happy Friday!!
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